Lawsuit: Zillow Ruined My Ability to Get a Decent Offer

A real estate developer who owns a $150 million spec home in Bel Air, Calif., has filed a lawsuit against Zillow, claiming the portal “tainted” his property by falsely recording that it sold for tens of millions of dollars less than the asking price. However, the home was not sold and was still on the market for the $150 million price tag. The developer, Bruce Makowsky, is suing Zillow for $60 million, citing “permanent harm” to the public perception of the property.

In February, a person with a Chinese IP address was able to hack into Zillow’s security measures and change the sales price of the mansion’s listing, the Los Angeles Times reports. Zillow only allows the owner of a listing to change information about the home. On Feb. 4, Makowsky’s home was shown on Zillow as having sold for $110 million. The lawsuit claims Zillow, over the course of a week, also posted false sales prices for the home of $90.54 million and $94.3 million.